


An Egg-cellent New Year

by Terrie



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Cultural Differences, Fluff, M/M, New Year's Eve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 16:07:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22059811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Terrie/pseuds/Terrie
Summary: Harry shares a New Year's tradition from his own world.
Relationships: Cisco Ramon/Earth-2 Harrison "Harry" Wells
Comments: 16
Kudos: 83
Collections: Harrisco New Year's Kisses: An Anthology





	An Egg-cellent New Year

"You want me to what?"

Harry pushes the basket towards Cisco. "It's New Year's Eve, Ramon. Take an egg."

Cisco looks down into the basket. It is, as Harry says, full of eggs, all of them dyed in various bold colors. Reds, blues, greens, yellows. All nestled on bright pink Easter “grass” that has Cisco wondering where the hell Harry got it this time of year. "Why am I taking an egg?"

"Because tonight is New Year's Eve." Harry pushes the basket towards him again. 

"Repeating that at me isn't going to result in me suddenly understanding what the hell you're talking about," Cisco says.

Harry looks down at the basket and then back up at Cisco. “Do you not do New Year’s eggs on your earth?”

“What part of me being completely confused gave it away? And why eggs?”

“New year. New beginnings.” Harry holds up the basket, gives it a light shake. “Eggs. Now, take one.”

Cisco takes a red egg. It’s light in his hand, and he sees the small hole at one end, where the contents have been removed. “And what am I doing with this egg? Is this like sex ed? Do I have to nurture my egg baby in the new year?”

Harry rolls his eyes. “An egg is nothing like a baby. And I know your earth has facsimile baby dolls.”

“Which cost money,” Cisco points out. “Which not every high school has. Eggs are fragile. Like babies. So if I didn’t just select Cisco Jr., what am I doing with it?”

"Right now, nothing," Harry says. "Just bring it to the party tonight - intact! I'll explain there, so I don't have to repeat myself endlessly."

Cisco turns the egg over in his hands, then holds it up to his ear and gives it a shake. "Is there something in there?" 

"Yes, but leave it alone. I told you, I'll explain tonight."

"Come on. Not even a little hint?" Cisco pouts and gives Harry his best needy look, gazing up at him through his eyelashes.

"Tonight," Harry repeats with a grin. "You can wait that long."

“Says who?” Cisco counters. "Maybe it's a form of horrible torture and I'll never be the same."

"I'll take the chance." Harry leans down for a quick kiss. “Tonight. I promise.”

\---

Barry and Iris are hosting for New Year's. Cisco had suggested STAR Labs, in case there was an emergency, but as team leader Barry had overridden him, claiming he had a good feeling about the night. Cisco doesn't think criminals really care much about "good feelings" but it's not his call. 

He arrives at Barry and Iris's apartment after an obligatory phone calls with his parents, the egg carefully stored in his coat pocket. He'd found a small cardboard box and filled it with bubble wrap, forming a safe little nest. Iris lets him into the apartment, and he gives her a distracted hello before making a beeline to Harry. "Okay, explanation time."

"Patience, Ramon. It's a thing. Ralph isn't here yet, and it's not close to midnight." Harry presses a glass of punch into Cisco's hand. It's light and fizzy, and a quick sip reveals it contains more than a little alcohol.

Cisco takes a shameless gulp. If Barry's wrong and criminals strike, well, that's Barry's issue, not his. "You're making this up as you go along, aren't you? You're doing this to drive me crazy."

"Yes. Not only did I make up an entire Earth-2 tradition, I got all your friends to play along, because as we all know, they like me more than you."

Cisco's eyes narrow, and he holds Harry's gaze for several moments. "Okay, fine. It's a real thing. So why won't you explain it?"

"That bit is at least partially to drive you crazy." Harry clinks his own glass of punch against Cisco’s. “Now. This is a party. Enjoy it.”

Cisco skulks around the edges of the room. Everyone has an egg. Iris has a bright yellow one. Barry’s is royal blue. Joe has a red one, like Cisco. Do the colors mean anything, or are they just to make the eggs look more interesting? Cisco tries not to read too much into the fact that he and Joe picked the same color.

Finally, around a quarter to midnight, Harry gathers everyone together. “Okay, does everyone have their egg?”

There’s mumbled agreement, and a couple people hold up their eggs as proof. Harry nods. “Okay, inside your egg is a bit of paper with a name — Ralph, don’t crack the egg open yet.”

Ralph makes a show of carefully setting his green-dyed egg back down. Once he’s no longer touching it, Harry continues. “The egg represents a new beginning for the new year. You hold it in your hands,” he demonstrates with a yellow egg of his own, “and mentally fill it with good wishes for the person in the coming year.”

“Point of order,” Ralph says. “How do we know what to wish for when we don’t know whose name is in the egg?”

“You wish for things everyone needs. Good health, success, happiness,” Harry says. “That’s part of the point. That it shouldn’t make a difference. They’re a member of your community and you should wish for them to have good things no matter who they are.”

Cisco looks down at his egg. Harry’s hit most of the major points, but it seems like cheating to only use those. To Harry’s items, he adds wishes for a year free of fear, and kidnappings, and fear of kidnappings. Restful nights, and inspiration. The love of family and friends. He feels a little silly, but he supposes it’s no sillier than making a wish on your birthday candles.

“Okay,” Harry says after several moments. “You can crack your eggs, but don’t show anyone the name inside.” 

There are crunching noises from around the room as everyone breaks their egg open. In moments, Iris is going around the room with a trash can, demanding people put the broken shells inside. Cisco pitches his shell as directed and then unrolls the small scroll of paper. He smiles to see the name there. Harrison Wells. Because of course it is. 

Cisco’s mind floods with all the things he might have wished for, if he’d known it was Harry. But that probably defeated the point. Maybe. This was Harry's tradition, not his own. But he still adds a couple of things to his mental list of well-wishings. Just in case. 

“So now what?” Joe asks. 

“Now we play a game.” Harry smiles, and there’s an anticipatory edge to it. “One by one, each person closes their eyes. Then, the person who got their name,” Harry holds up his own paper, though not so anyone can see what’s on it, “gives them a kiss. The person with their eyes closed has to guess who kissed them.”

“And what does that symbolize?” Caitlin asks.

“Nothing. It’s just for fun.” Harry looks around the room. “Alphabetical order is traditional. Allen, close your eyes.”

Barry looks skeptical but lets himself be coaxed into closing his eyes. He gets a quick peck on the cheek, then Harry says, “So? What’s your guess?”

Barry opens his eyes and looks around the room. “Well, no stubble, so it’s not any of the guys. It’s not Iris. I’d recognize her lips anywhere. So, based on the perfume…. I’m going to say Caitlin.” 

“CCPD represent,” Joe declares at Barry’s correct guess. They exchange a high-five. 

Iris gives Barry a proper kiss, “As a reward” for guessing correctly, and then it’s Caitlin’s turn. She guesses Cecile instead of Iris, and graciously passes her turn to Cecile, who successfully guesses Ralph. Then it’s Cisco’s turn.

He shuts his eyes tight. There’s a ghost of air across the side of his face, then a pair of dry lips pressed to his skin. He gives whoever it is a few moments to step back then opens his eyes and looks around. It can’t be Caitlin, Cecile or Ralph. They’re already given their kisses. He doesn’t think it’s Iris. He would have noticed Joe’s beard. “... Barry?”

“Nope, sorry.” Barry points at Harry. “One letter off.” 

Harry sighs. “Are my kisses that generic?”

“It was like being kissed by my grandmother,” Cisco tells him. Minus the mix of lavender and wintergreen that his grandmother had always smelled like. She’d been the only one in his family prone to cheek kissing of even the adults. Nothing like Harry's usual kisses. He ignores Harry’s pained expression to say, “Your turn.”

Harry dutifully closes his eyes. He’s tall enough that Cisco has to go up on his toes a bit to reach Harry’s cheek. And then he has to rapidly back up as Harry’s eyes fly open. “Cisco?”

Cisco’s cheeks go hot. “I guess my kisses aren’t generic.”

“I guess not.” Harry stares at him so long that, during Iris’s and Joe’s turns, Cisco slides up next to him.

“Does it mean something?”

“Does what mean something?” Harry asks.

“That we got each other’s name. Does that mean something? Or is it just one of the fun quirks of probability?” 

Harry glances down at him. “There’s a few variations, like most superstitions and myths. The basic commonality is that it’s supposed to be one of your most important relationships in the next year.”

“We don’t need a New Year’s game to tell us that.” Cisco reaches out and takes Harry’s hand in his.

It’s Ralph’s turn. “Process of elimination, we know it’s Joe. Lay one on me, big guy.”

Ralph holds out his arms, following Joe as the older man tries to dodge. At Ralph’s “Come on, I want my New Year’s kiss,” Cisco dissolves into giggles, leaning into Harry’s side for support. Harry puts an arm around Cisco’s shoulder to hold him up and leans down to whisper in his ear. “I cheated.”

“What?” Cisco’s brain scrambles to keep up.

“At the eggs,” Harry adds.

Which makes much more sense than the possible alternative. “How do you cheat at eggs?”

“Whoever makes the eggs is supposed to let everyone else take one and then take the remaining one. But I kept yours. Never even added it to the basket.”

“Couldn’t stand the thought of anyone else kissing me, huh?”

“Not even a little bit,” Harry admits. 

“Well, let me introduce you to an Earth-1 New Year’s tradition I think you’ll like.” Cisco turns and grips the front of Harry’s shirt in his hands. “We kiss when the ball drops at midnight.”

He never does notice if Ralph gets his kiss from Joe.


End file.
